November 10, 2008
Recovering Ikea Chairs
Hello, anyone who might still be subscribed to this feed. Hows it going? I am going to start blogging again over here at streets and yos. without making any lofty promises about daily or weekly updates, lets give it a go.. starting with a recent sewing project, recovering my boyfriend's old ikea poang chairs.
For about a year, these two chairs have sat in my living room, looking ok but not stellar. They are two 15-year-old ikea poang chairs, still in great condition but for the covers, which were faded and out of shape. When bf and I combined households, I said, sure, bring the chairs, they are comfy and I can certainly make covers for them.
before
It took me awhile to get around to them. The redo over at habitual was a great inspiration.
To make these covers, I copied the old ones. I first examined one and took dimensions. Since they are basically a long rectangle, its not too hard. I didn't have enough fabric to do the front and back solidly, so I added some spare ivory fabric to the back.
The back is made up of several pieces with two zippers.
My zipper sewing left something to be desired.. looks okay in this photo, but in real life, no. Luckily noone will ever see this while the chairs are in use. There are two zippers and a couple rows of stitching in between.
The front is actually quilted - it is made up of a sandwich outer fabric, batting, and muslin. I don't have a walking foot for my sewing machine, which is recommended for sewing this sort of thing. So I used spray glue to attach the layers, then sewed the 4 vertical lines while holding the fabric taut. I was amazed that this worked.
With the addition of a fuzzy blanket, its a great cat spot.
Fabric: 5 yards from Amy Butler's Nigella Collection, purchased at quilthome.com
Comments (34)
That is a great job you did! Gives me some ideas... :)
Posted by Erin | November 19, 2008 11:27 AM
Posted on November 19, 2008 11:27
Oooo - very happy at the prospect of reading your blog again :)
Posted by grumperina | November 19, 2008 11:39 AM
Posted on November 19, 2008 11:39
welcome back!!
Posted by yahaira | November 19, 2008 12:30 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 12:30
The chair looks great! Love the fabric. Love the exposed brick wall too.
Posted by Jasmine | November 19, 2008 12:31 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 12:31
yay you're back! chairs look awesome, btw. a great improvement from the drab ikea covers.
Posted by winnie | November 19, 2008 12:52 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 12:52
welcome back! the chair is awesome, and so is that exposed brick wall!
Posted by mai | November 19, 2008 1:03 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 13:03
You're back, woo!
Posted by Linda | November 19, 2008 1:13 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 13:13
Welcome back! I love the pattern in the first photo.
Posted by desiknitter | November 19, 2008 1:18 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 13:18
So happy that you have posted again! I've long held on to my subscription to your blog hoping you'd come back. Thanks for all the good archives, and welcome back. PS the chair project is awesome - I really need to cover the old pillow on my same old chair.
Posted by emily | November 19, 2008 1:21 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 13:21
W00t, you're back!
Posted by cirilia | November 19, 2008 1:24 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 13:24
OMG. I thought for sure bloglines was just acting up. Nice to have you back! Chair cover looks very pro.
Posted by Julia | November 19, 2008 1:36 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 13:36
Yup, we're still here! Lovely chair upholstering and congrats on moving in with your bf :)
Posted by Veronique | November 19, 2008 1:40 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 13:40
woohoo! You're back! And the chair looks fab!
Posted by Kellie | November 19, 2008 2:07 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 14:07
What an amazing idea!
Posted by Trish | November 19, 2008 2:43 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 14:43
Welcome back! That is jaw-droppingly inspiring, even if it is just a big square.
Posted by Donna | November 19, 2008 2:53 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 14:53
Missed you!
Love the chair covers - my cats fight over the Poang chair.
Posted by Megan | November 19, 2008 3:06 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 15:06
Still here. And glad to see you're back.
Posted by Nell | November 19, 2008 3:37 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 15:37
Yay, so happy to see you post again! :-)
Posted by terhi | November 19, 2008 3:53 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 15:53
Ah, weird, I was just searching your blog yesterday because I am currently working on a Demi and I remembered you made a gorgeous one and wanted to see if you had made any modifications. Then I was wondering where you'd gone because I so enjoyed your blog. Anyway, welcome back and the seat covers look awesome!
Posted by Phoebe | November 19, 2008 4:14 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 16:14
Nice fabric choice! The "new" chair looks great.
Posted by Johanna | November 19, 2008 4:37 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 16:37
i'm still here with you. the chair looks great!!
Posted by lynette | November 19, 2008 5:19 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 17:19
Welcome back! Fabulous chair!
Posted by Sharon | November 19, 2008 5:35 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 17:35
That fabric is fabulous! You did a fantastic job...can't wait to see your knits again!
Posted by carolyn | November 19, 2008 5:50 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 17:50
yay! welcome back! i was hoping you'd start blogging again someday.
and yes, what an improvement, the chairs look great!
Posted by melissa | November 19, 2008 7:10 PM
Posted on November 19, 2008 19:10
Welcome back!! You were missed. Thanks for the inspiration too as I too need to revamp my Poang chair!
Posted by Peacock Chic | November 20, 2008 1:17 AM
Posted on November 20, 2008 01:17
Welcome back!
Great post to start blogging with. The chairs are definitely much better looking!
Posted by MJ | November 20, 2008 4:06 AM
Posted on November 20, 2008 04:06
Look at all the readers you still have! Fabulous. And the chair cover is wonderful - I really like that fabric.
Posted by Stephanie | November 21, 2008 11:06 AM
Posted on November 21, 2008 11:06
HEY! Welcome back! My poang chair cover looks like crap too! Thanks for the inspiration because I was about to throw mine out!
Posted by yaiAnn | November 21, 2008 2:14 PM
Posted on November 21, 2008 14:14
Happy to see you back again! I don't think I've commented before... but... hello.
I too have a poang chair which is really showing its age - thanks for the inspiration to revitalise it. It doesn't look too hard even for a remedial sewer like myself,and I love your Amy Butler fabric. Yay.
Posted by jane | November 24, 2008 9:17 AM
Posted on November 24, 2008 09:17
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Posted by lpwk1uz | January 24, 2009 3:43 AM
Posted on January 24, 2009 03:43
Thank you so much! I was doubting I could sew a new cover for my pello chair, but this is an inspiration! Will be bustin it out this weekend!
Posted by Rendi | March 11, 2009 8:08 PM
Posted on March 11, 2009 20:08
Gorgeous! Just found your blog and love your sewing projects. This one in particular is a great inspiration. Thanks for sharing!
Posted by Kim | September 2, 2009 7:08 PM
Posted on September 2, 2009 19:08
Do you have a tutorial if so could you please email it to me so I can have someone make these or how much would you charge to make some covers for me?
Posted by chris | November 16, 2010 12:33 AM
Posted on November 16, 2010 00:33
Do you have a tutorial if so could you please email it to me so I can have someone make these or how much would you charge to make some covers for me?
Posted by chris | November 16, 2010 12:33 AM
Posted on November 16, 2010 00:33